Chris Evans is one of the most unpredictable recruits in Michigan's class. One site likes him a lot, another likes him just fine, and a couple are meh. He listed at three different spots by those sites and could be any of four different things in Ann Arbor:

"[I’ll play] either defensive back, slot, running back."

At Ben Davis, Evans was a heavily utilized all-purpose offensive threat who rushed for over 2300 yards and caught 91 passes for over 1000 yards in his final two years, one of which ended in a state championship. His highlights see him line up in the backfield, in the slot, and on the outside. Meanwhile his seven-on-seven team used him as a defensive back frequently:

…definitely looked the most natural playing cornerback … started his day by making a big interception down the field and then came back with several pass break-ups. …outstanding top-end speed

entered camp wanting to work on his DB skills and did just that. … improved the most out of every position, playing both CB and FS. His vision of the field continued to get better as he intercepted a great deal of passes during 7v7.

…versatile athlete. … catches the ball without effort. …speed is better than anyone else on the field. … Displays a feel for finding an opening and then accelerating through it. He is slow to the hole and then displays a burst to slide through it. … Exhibits good feet and an ability to avoid direct hits. Can slide laterally and avoid a shot.

When Ace checked out the Avon-Ben Davis game featuring Evans and Brandon Peters last fall, Evans was largely bottled up until a 52-yard screen touchdown that is the last play on the FBO video above, but he did demonstrate that speed:

We got an early glimpse at how fast Evans is when his teammate returned a kickoff to the house (0:30 mark) and Evans, who lined up as the other return man, went from nearly a dead stop ten yards behind the play to a dead sprint, getting out in front to wall off the final defender who could've made a tackle.

…excellent downfield speed and is a long strider. …excellent explosive quickness coming out of his breaks. …. mismatch on third down coming out of the backfield matched up against a linebacker. … Nice agility and plus balance. Feet keep moving in tight spaces.

Evans can go. Full stop, no caveat, Chris Evans is going to be one of the fastest players in the Big Ten as soon as this fall.

Evans isn't just fast in a straight line, with many evaluations focusing on his fluidity and change of direction.

ESPN praises him as a "smooth, balanced, athletic player." He showed at Michigan's Indianapolis satellite camp last year and wowed onlookers. Wiltfong:

Evans has speed … but it’s how fluid he is that impresses. The 5-foot-11, 186-pound Evans is so smooth changing direction. … a cut above the rest [in] running back agility drills and in 1-on-1s it was easy for him to abuse the linebackers on the field. He’s sure-handed.

Excellent hands and pass-catching ability. Very comfortable running routes. A smooth kid who glides through traffic. Has good, maybe not elite speed and can make cuts and moves while going full speed. He's elusive and does a great job of finding running lanes.

… from the moment drills started he was on another level, showcasing the speed, balance and agility that will eventually make him a sought-after prospect. … Evans could not be checked during the competition portion, as there wasn’t a running back or corner that could match up athletically.

Those pass catching skills pop up a lot. Evans isn't a running back who has to move to receiver in college because he's small. He's already advanced in that department.

… can catch the ball, and not just the easy ones, and has good quickness and route running skills as well.

…runs routes and catches the football with his hands like a wide receiver.

…seemed to make a catch on every other play. A one-handed grab while staying in bounds on a downfield pass was perhaps the play of the day.

Evans is a guy with nearly 400 rushes who also keeps pace with many D-I high school wide receivers downfield. He'd be brutal to defend in a spread offense. He came to Michigan.

I think Evans ends up playing safety in Ann Arbor. This goes against the grain. While many people mention his potential at DB nobody outright projects him there; ESPN evaluates as a running back and the other sites keep bringing up his hands and routes. This isn't limited to analysts. In early January, Steve Lorenz relayed some information from the staff:

Michigan coaches were happy to hear that ChrisEvans will not take any more official visits as they view him as a potential playmaker on the offensive side of the ball. … From what we're told, he could see carries directly out of the backfield or get touches at the slot wide receiver position.

There have been a few major changes since then. NJ WR Brad Hawkins—a player many were projecting to safety—looks unlikely to make it to campus. NJ WR Ahmir Mitchell, another potential safety, nearly transferred. And Don Brown replaced DJ Durkin at defensive coordinator.

The current situation:

Michigan has an ungodly pile of tight ends to suck up skill position snaps.

They bring back sophomore Grant Perry and brought in 1-3 other players who can play in the slot.

Evans has the best chance to be an impact guy at safety. Even if he's the best slot, he's probably the best slot by an inch. He might be the best safety option by a mile. Brown runs a lot of cover two and blitzes a ton; he needs guys who can eat up ground and prevent his aggressive ways from resulting in quick touchdowns. Evans promises to be that kind of guy… eventually.

There are some external indicators that Evans is best suited for the defensive backfield. His camp performances indicated potential:

…began his day playing cornerback where he was able to keep in check the best receivers at the camp with his lateral quickness and ability to turn and run.

Ohio State's late offer was sincere and a tad insulting, as late offers always are; it was as a defensive back. When Evans committed he said Michigan wanted him in the slot or at DB and that he had a preference:

"I want to play defensive back. I think that's the best spot for my future."

Soon after that preference was replaced with the usual "I'll play anywhere" quote, but I think that's illuminating all the same. A few months later he mentioned that Michigan was talking to him about corner and slot, but mostly they just wanted him because he was very fast.

Evans can probably get to a weight where he won't be a liability as a tackler. He's already put on around about 20 pounds…

As a sophomore, Evans weighed just 167 pounds. … “My sophomore year (Lawrence Central’s) Darrin Kirkland hit me and I felt like I’d go back 10 feet,” he said. “This year when we encountered, I didn’t feel like a toy getting thrown around.”

…to get to 185 or 190 depending on who you listen to; Wiltfong believes he can "easily add 20 pounds and be just as dynamic." When Tim Sullivan caught him in person he was impressed with his lower half:

…isn't very big but he's extremely well put together and chiseled. His lower body is very thick and allows him to be quick, fast, sudden, and also quite powerful.

"I think I'm a good student of the game so I know where things are supposed to hit and what happens when this happens. I'm a student of the game and I work hard at it and my vision helps me on the field."

See also the upcoming "nah" quote about that OSU offer. He can hack safety, probably, and Michigan needs those. But if you told me he was anything else I'd believe you, too.

“It's like there's two girls and one girl is Beyonce, which is Ohio State. I’m like, dang, I want Beyonce because she looks good and has everything, so I want her. However, she is like 'nah' and I’m going to hold back. I don’t know if I want to go out with you right now. I’m like alright cool, then I will just hold back and do whatever I can and just chill. Then Halle Berry comes in and is like, hey Chris, what’s up and I like you. I’m like okay cool, so I am going to go with Halle Berry and have been going out with her since June. However, Beyonce pops back up and is like, hey babe, what’s up and remember me? We can go out if you want to? I’m like I got Halle Berry and I’m happy with her. That is what I want. I tried to get with you, but you didn’t want it, so I chose otherwise. Now that you want to jump back in, I got nothing for you.”

Was considered a "heavy Michigan State lean" on March 23rd, visited Ann Arbor a week later, and then it was all over but the shouting.

Why Dennis Norfleet or Dymonte Thomas? Norfleet was a very good high school running back with the ability to pop it between the tackles and juke in tight spaces. Michigan moved him to slot receiver, where he was little more than a predictable jet sweep threat, and eventually to cornerback. Evans is considerably bigger than the 5'8" Norfleet but they're ranked around the same place and Michigan hasn't had another spread H-back type guy recently. I have similar fears that if Evans ends up being that slot/RB hybrid guy he'll be similarly lost. I have a hard time envisioning that as a major role under Harbaugh.

Thomas is a reasonable comparison if Evans ends up on defense. Thomas is taller, at 6'2", but even now he's listed on the roster at 195, a number Evans can hit as early as next year. Both dudes are super fast. Thomas was a high school running back first and foremost; he also played OLB. Evans shades more towards the corner side of the hybrid safety continuum, but as a terrific athlete with a lot of positional uncertainty and probable eventual destination as a cover-oriented safety Thomas is a kindred spirit, down to the length of time it'll take before he's ready to go.

Variance: High. For the same reasons listed above, more or less. Also my bet that he's a safety brings questions about tackling to the forefront.

Ceiling: High-minus. Evans's speed and intelligence could make him into a very good safety, but he's not 6'2" and also a bolt.

General Excitement Level: Moderate-plus. Very fast gentleman with a lot of question marks.

Projection: Redshirt. I expect his position will remain a question mark through most of fall camp and possibly through much of his freshman year; the guess here is that he ends up a DB by spring practice, either safety or corner. If so he'll be thrown into a melee as Michigan loses its top five defensive backs after the season.

He's not likely to win that melee at corner. He's not likely to beat out Tyree Kinnel at safety. That fourth spot, though, is wide open if Khaleke Hudson is indeed the Peppers heir apparent. If it's Evans that's almost certainly going to be painful in the short term. In year three and beyond I'd be pretty comfortable with Evans out there as a super fast safety who can turn and run when the opposition attempts to go over his head.

Wait, it's confirmed that Ahmir Mitchell nearly transferred? I was attentive to the rumor thread from a little while ago but never heard anything official about the mystery NJ receiver. And, of course, Hawkins is a qualifying issue. Was there an update I missed?

So he's not expected to play this year? I was hoping he'd get some touches so that he would be ready to take over as an outside WR next year. We really need some security there and I'm not sure about the health of Drake Harris. Ways could be a beast though.

Is Perry strictly a slot-type? I wonder if he could move outside in 2017 after the wealth of slot-types UM picked up in the last recruiting cycle. Brian also seems to think McDoom and Crawford could potentially move outside.

I just spent a little while trying to untangle where that came from, and I can't find anything pointing to Mitchell. The best I can find is that "an incoming WR from NJ" was in hot water, possibly because he was seen smoking something in a Snapchat video. Obviously that narrows it down to Mitchell and Brad Hawkins. But Mitchell denied that rumor was about him, when somebody asked, and I haven't been able to find anything that indicates it was about Mitchell.

Demario McCallThis is a comparison that makes me happy. He played in my son's conference, not much of a player, but give him a touch of daylight and he's gone. I didn't want him to go blue due to character issues, but fear him at the same time. If Evans can be that, plus a good dude with a work ethic, that levels the field

He was the best RB at whichever all star game he was at, Darren Sproles? Danny Woodhead? Dion Lewis? for comparison. One of only two guys on offense that made me say "who was that?". I was unhappy when I found out where he was going but the other guy was MCDOOM so I will take it.

Agree, simply due to age. However, since it is now my hypothetical, I would have a choice between the 2 from when they were my age. That way I may enjoy the, ah.... pleasure of their presence for their entire prime.

Two things really stand out as bad luck: Dymonte Thomas never got a redshirt and Brian Cole transferred. We need DBs in the worst way.....hopefully we can get a big time safety recruit in the upcoming class

Imagine another year with Thomas. He seemed to figure things out last year and I'm really excited for him this year. I think if Evans gets a redshirt to bulk up and then another couple years waiting and learning from those above him, he could be a prime safety candidate. His height may affect his impact, but he could end up being a really solid player and hella fast. Probably also likely to return kicks. Seems like we have a lot of those lightning bolt kick returners this year.

Here's the thing about Thomas, everybody keeps bringing up the "I wish we had redshirted him" bit but I swear I remember talk about certain recruits being promised playing time as freshmen. Thomas would be one guy that would have made sense for that, given his status as a recruit.

However, Beyonce pops back up and is like, hey babe, what’s up and remember me? We can go out if you want to? I’m like I got Halle Berry and I’m happy with her. That is what I want. I tried to get with you, but you didn’t want it, so I chose otherwise. Now that you want to jump back in, I got nothing for you

the Beyonce and Halle Berry quote, paired with his demand for attention to his OLine, leaves me with respect. I hope Evans sees alot of playing time and becomes a killer safety, with an occasional opportunity on offense. Go Blue

Evans is fun to watch, but I feel like he's the type who has disappointed somewhat in the past (Norfleet, Carlos Brown, Mike Shaw, etc.). Obviously, those guys contributed in some way or another (returns, spot starters, etc.) but they didn't tear it up at Michigan like we've seen speedsters blow up elsewhere like WVU, Ohio State, Oregon, etc.

Like Brian said, he's hard to peg as a recruit. If Michigan history is any suggestion, I feel like he'll be a solid player who doesn't really turn into The Guy at any particular time.

Your examples are all RBs (Norfleet was a kind of RB-ish hybrid position type, admittedly). Does your concern/expectations change if they flip him to D?

Funny thing, those three guys you mention all seemed to have their own issues - Norfleet was kind of a positionless guy the coaches didn't know what to do with, Brown tended to be banged up most of the time, and Shaw (as I recall) couldn't not bounce, bounce, bouce outside.

Well, they flipped Norfleet to defense (a couple times), too. I think if they put him on defense soon enough in his college career, he can develop. He's athletic enough to do so. But if he wastes away on the bench for two or three seasons before becoming a safety, then it might be too late. I think we saw with a guy like James Rogers (another player you could compare Evans to) that constantly flipping from CB to WR to CB to WR to CB stunted his development. He hung on with the Buccaneers for a bit as a practice squad corner, but give him 4-5 years as a college corner and he might actually be playing in the NFL.

We'll see what Evans's issue is (or if he has one). People didn't expect Brown's injury issues or him being tackled so easily, for example. Things become a little more obvious when these guys line up against other elite athletes in college.

Rogers was very fast, but only straight line fast, as I recall. Every snippet on Evans talks about his swerve. Not an apt comparison therefore. Plus, by that stage of Lloyd's career, let's just say it, he was hardly a great coach, nor did he surround himself with great coaches. Not a problem Evans will have.

I on the other hand, see a guy who WILL make an impact, at whichever position they put him at - which, under Harbaugh could be many and varied. The speed to keep guys from taking a swing pass to the house against our new aggressive D, and the moves to catch that swing pass and make guys miss. I say he plays both several snaps on O & is a primary deep safety on D, as soon as '17. May even see snaps on O this yeear, if he makes dudes look silly in practice!

I have high hopes - but then I haven't read one of these player profiles yet and NOT FELT that! ;-)

Really walk away excited about his athleticism and yet conflicted by his versatility, or more his lack of dominance at a position.

UM needs safeties a lot more than space guys on O and Evans is a smart guy. Agree on the tackling concern, but he is agile enough to master that skill if he is willing. I hope they put him at S early and keep him there so he nails it by 2017, unlike Dymonte's excursion around the D.